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The Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG), the first research and teaching institution focusing on governance and public policy in the Arab world, has organised a trip for its students to visit leading institutions centres across China.

Themed around innovation, the trip was part of the School’s efforts to provide a holistic educational experience to its students, allowing them to get inspired and build valuable business relationships with some of China’s most prominent thought leaders.

The trip was organised with the aim of helping students benchmark their organisational innovation strategies and effectively use what they discover in their respective organisations’ growth. With seven students in participation, it created a platform for exploration across several industries including health, finance, technology and digitalisation. The students were able to gain first-hand insight into breakthroughs across diverse sectors in Beijing, Hangzhou, Jiaxing and Shanghai.

MBRSG’s Executive President His Excellency Dr Ali Sebaa Al Marri said: “The Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government seeks, first and foremost, to empower future managers and leaders, and arm them with the knowledge they need to navigate our rapidly changing and increasingly complex society. We consider it our duty to not only educate, but inspire our students, and expose them to current and future global trends and practices, in line with the objectives of the UAE National Innovation Strategy 2021.”

“It is with this objective in mind that the School organised this eye-opening trip to China,” H.E. asserted. “The tour introduces our students to the latest breakthroughs in innovation, research, science and technology, which our wise leadership has underlined as the foundations for a robust knowledge-based economy.”

The tour kicked off at Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business (CKGSB), where the MBRSG students attended seminars on innovation in China delivered by CKGSB’s alumni and faculty, followed by a seminar on Innovation Management in the GCC delivered by MBRSG’s Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Prof. Martin Spraggon. The students had the opportunity to network with some of CKGSB’s alumni, who collectively account for 1/6th of China’s entire GDP and are commonly referred to as “The Billionaire Club”. Notable alumni from CKGSB include Jack Ma, the Co-founder and Executive Chairman of Alibaba Group, which the students also visited during their trip.

“We sought to expose our students to international best practices and advanced technology infrastructure management techniques by taking them inside some of the best-performing companies and academic institutions in the world,” said Professor Spraggon. “By visiting leading universities in all four cities, we also used the trip as an opportunity to explore areas of future collaboration, strengthen the relationship between the UAE and China, and promote the culture of knowledge sharing between the two countries.”

Other notable university visits included Tsinghua University, which is ranked as the best engineering and computer science school in the world, Zhejiang International Studies University, Zhejiang Gongshang University and Jiaxing Hongchuan Institute.

In addition to their visit to Alibaba, the students also visited Fosun, an international conglomerate, to explore its history and growth. They also visited government entities, such as the UAE Embassy in Beijing; the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ office in Shanghai; and Zheijiang Provincial Department of Commerce. In addition to that, the students also visited the Bund Finance Centre (the DIFC of Shanghai); Jiaxing City (China’s smart city, home of the WeDoctor Cloud Clinic); Wuzhen Water town; Private Equity Town (A private village for China’s Hedge Fund Elite); Zhejiang Oversees High-Level Talents Innovation Park (a government funded initiative to attract international entrepreneurial talents) and Future Sci-Tech City (Science & Technology based city that combines liveability, mobility and sustainability).

Outside the packed educational agenda of the visit, the travelling MBRSG students were treated to sightseeing tours in Beijing, covering Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, and Wangfujing Pedestrian Street, in addition to the Great Wall and Jade factory and Tea house.